Modelling of metal hydride hydrogen compressors from thermodynamics of hydrogen – Metal interactions viewpoint: Part I. Assessment of the performance of metal hydride materials

Abstract

This work presents a model to determine productivity and heat consumption of hydrogen compression utilising metal hydrides (MH) by using Pressure – Composition – Temperature (PCT) diagrams of the MH materials at defined operating conditions – temperatures and hydrogen pressures. The present Part I is focused on the analysis of hydrogen compression performances of several AB5- and AB2-type intermetallic alloys which, when operating between temperatures of 20 and 150 °C, provide H2 compression up to 500 atm, with a cycle productivity about 100 NL H2/kg MH and compression ratio of up to 10, at H2 suction pressure below 10–15 atm, or up to 5 at higher suction pressures. We show that calculated cycle productivities of hydrogen compression are related to the operating conditions and significantly vary for the different MH materials, even though showing similar trends in their changes.